Egypt's Supreme State Prosecution on Tuesday handed down a 15-day detention order for an Egyptian satirical blogger over accusations of "joining an outlawed group and spreading false news." The prosecution charged former satirical show reporter Shady Abu Zeid with joining an outlawed group which aims to subvert the law and constitution, and obstruct the state and its institutions from carrying out its duties. He is also accused of spreading false news against the Egyptian state through Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated broadcast organisations. Abu Zeid started in 2016 his own satirical page on Facebook, named The Rich Content, which features videos of him interviewing citizens on the street with ironic questions. He is best known for his video reports featured on satirical show Abla Fahita in 2016, which aired on private satellite channel CBC. He quit the show in 2016 after controversy resulted from a video of himself and a friend, young actor Ahmed Malek, distributing inflated condoms to police in Tahrir Square during the fifth anniversary of the January 25 revolution, which coincides with Egypt's National Police Day. The prosecution's decision comes nearly two days after Abu Zeid's sister, Rola, said her brother was arrested on Sunday at dawn outside the family's house.
